The United States, NATO, and a new multilateral relationship / Frank R. Douglas.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Douglas, Frank R.

Series:

PSI reports (Westport, Conn.)

PSI reports

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

National security--Europe.

National security.

Europe.

United States--Foreign relations--Europe.

United States.

International relations.

Europe--Foreign relations--United States.

Physical Description:

x, 237 pages : illustrations, maps ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

Westport, Conn. : Praeger Security International, 2008.

Summary:

Formed in the aftermath of WWII and in the face of the emerging threat posed by the Soviet Union, the transformation that has taken place in recent years within NATO has been neither natural nor easy for the multinational organization or the United States. When the Soviet Union ceased to exist, it seemed NATO would disappear too. The rationale for a large American military deployment in Europe, described by President Eisenhower as a temporary move, no longer could be supported. This work documents the transition of the United States' relationship with NATO from a focus on the defense of Western Europe to an inclusive military and political organization concerned with the security of all of Europe with the real potential for employment of its military power beyond the European continent. Despite budgeting and economic concerns raised by key members of the U.S. Congress, President George H.W. Bush supported the status quo and was caught completely off guard when the Berlin Wall fell. He and Defense Secretary Dick Cheney had not fully understood the changed strategic environment in Europe, but the U.S. Congress did and offered many suggestions. NATO was saved. President Bill Clinton continued to promote the validity of NATO, expanded NATO eastwards, reduced the U.S. troop level in Europe to 100,000, and gave NATO a mission beyond warfare with the peacekeeping task in Bosnia. A new Atlantic relationship had been forged for the post-Cold War period.

Contents:

1 American Focus on a Credible Defense of Western Europe 7

2 Considerations for American Military Reductions in Europe Prior to the 1990s 28

3 United States' Fiscal Cost and Military Commitment to NATO from 1980 to 1989 40

4 Developing a New American Approach to NATO in the 1990s 51

5 The U.S. Military Draw-Down within NATO, 1990-2000 76

6 The United States' Support for an Expanded NATO 98

7 The New U.S. Relationship with NATO 122

8 American Strategies for Its Post-Cold War Membership in NATO 145.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [209]-228) and index.

ISBN:

9780313344763

0313344760

OCLC:

155757041